A Fallen Knight-Lost art of Necromancy

Chapter 177: Znye Islnad

........

In a lonesome desert, a man was riding his horse for who knows how many days. His skin was all dried up and the sweat on his body talked about the current heat of the atmosphere.

TAKTAK. TAK....

The horse hooves didn't stop his movement, only his pace was slowed down due to extreme fatigueless.

[You can at least tell me where we are heading Severus?] From who knows where but Noworry appeared on Severus' shoulder.

[Oh, Lord! It's so fking hot outside] Noworry was worried about his lustrous wings. What if dust sits on them?

Severus was also tired from the exhaustion. It had been more than a week since they had left the Rivera kingdom. He came down from the saddle and gripped the horse loosely while tying a knot on his hand. From his bag, he took out his compass and read it.

[What does it show?] Noworry asked curiously.

SIGH!

He exhaled a long sigh. "It shows west."

[Still?]

Severus nodded his head.  He thought travelling to the west would be easy or just would be a long trip, but he was wrong. Completely wrong. Sure, this journey was long but also tiring. The entire way was dead, and it felt like he was walking on dead man's land. The last time he saw humans was a week ago when he crossed the border of Rivera. Since then, he was all alone with his horse. They were barely surviving with the food they had brought with them. Even the food for horses was scarce. This desert had no vegetation, so Severus felt helpless while feeding the horse.

[Severus!!! WHAT ARE YOUR PLANS?] Noworry asked seriously.

"Well" Severus put his hand on his forehead in his exhaustion and finally decided to share his plans with Noworry.

"In my previous life I heard rumors about a strong spirit consuming men from far off west land. In Znye Kingdom which is situated in the middle of the desert, had always been infamous for dealings with supernatural things. Almost all of the news about them had always been sealed. Of course, whatever we know is just the tip of it as no one had ever succeeded in infiltrating their kingdom. They are said to be powerful and mysterious but thankfully they never waged wars against other kingdoms."

[Feels suspicious] Noworry chimed in.

Severus grinned. "Of course, it is suspicious."

"If can't imagine such a powerful kingdom will just lay low. I once had the honor to meet the crown prince of Znye Island and he was damn cocky and brute. He was the exact type of man who didn't feed his body but his ego. I had always been suspicious about them but never got a chance."

Severus stopped in the middle. His expression turned somber but within a few seconds turned normal.

"My last mission in my previous life was to infiltrate Znye kingdom and bring useful information for Rivera. However, I died before I could infiltrate it."

Noworry felt chills in the middle of the desert when the temperature was just touching the sky. [If you know it's dangerous then why are we heading there? For Fk sake Severus you just fought a near-death battle in Rivera. I don't know how much you have recovered but me] Noworry purposefully flaunted his wings in front of Severus.

[Yes me. I haven't recovered a bit]

"."

What a liar.

Severus knew noworry was lying to prevent him from going to the dangerous kingdom but it was too late now.

"We are going there and that's final"' Severus disregarded all his pleas.

Noworry sulked as he again hid inside Severus' dress. [Fine but I don't see a way] He shouted.

HA!

A smirk graced Severus' face. "That's one of his security levels known as mirage level security. It's a magical barrier that hides the kingdom from outsiders. Only the natives can see the kingdom as well as some other people, who possess skills."

Noworry became silent for a while.

[Do you have the skills? Or perhaps can you see the palace?] Noworry asked hopefully.

"Sadly, I don't owe such skills, nor do I have any special visions" Severus said as if it was a joke.

[]

When Noworry heard that Severus was as clueless as he was, he really wanted to flick Severus on his forehead. He wondered whether exhaustion had taken over his sanity. If they don't know the way, then why had they come here? To get lost or what?

At this rate if they both continued then they surely would die from excessive heat and scarce amounts of food and water.

[It's a stupid idea Severus] Noworry chided him.

Severus knew he would get yelled upon but who cares!!!!

Severus closed the compass and put it on back. "The safest and easiest way to find the Kingdom is to headd in the east direction without stopping. It is said that this path is the longest, but it is far safer than others. Strong beasts and cursed spirits are all over the desert. I don't know when I will put my foot in a landmine or end up in their trap."

Are you serious?

Landmine?

Trap?

Mirage?

And no food. This life was hell as compared to other lives.

"I am serious. Completely serious" Severus made a serious expression to prove his point.

[.]

So childish.

Noworry snorted.

[If they are so successful then why would they leave such a loophole in their security? I admit the path is long but anyone with enough ration would easily find their Kingdom.] Noworry said as a matter of fact.

Nod Nod!

"It is sure a loop in their security, but they know the risk behind it and that is the reason they still have it in their system. "

[What do you mean?] Noworry interest piqued in. 

Why would someone keep loopholes in their system and that too intentionally?

Severus stretched his sore body as he continued doing some stretches. "It's true that no one knows what is happening inside their kingdom, but it is also true that Znye's are aware about the outside world. Cooping inside a place is impossible. You need to communicate with people to deal with problems. So only selected people can go in and out of the kingdom. Rumors tell that there are twelve knights who are allowed and are known as eyes and ears of the Znye Kingdom. They are responsible for bringing every single piece of information from the outside world and served Zyne's King."

[The Kingdom name sure has weight. I wonder how the king is in real?] Noworry said casually but when Severus heard it. His expression turned weird.

Noworry saw the change in his expression and was baffled.

Severus gave him a look as if he had eaten a fly.

[You are hiding something from me?]

"Uhm" Severus evaded the question. "It would be better if you see him in person."

Severus dodged the question.

[]

Strange

Noworry was going to curse Severus for evading when he heard some noises and became alert.

[Severus. there is someone.]

"Who?" Severus also turned vigilant. This place was also called the land of death and the only thing that would help them to survive here was to be always on their toes.

Even after activating his senses to its extremes, Severus wasn't able to sense anything.

Dread filled his heart. "This is not good Noworry. I can't sense anything."

Noworry was feeling the same. [Me too.  I am also only able to sense their energies. Something is off. Their energies are different and stronger than a normal human.]

Severus gave him an eye.

"Of course, they are strong so their energy levels will be on a different level too."

Severus was not aware of what Noworry was explaining but Noworry did. He understood the energy level and that was the reason he had a really uneasy feeling about it. He prayed his intuitions were wrong and he was completely wrong.

Only the future would tell how wrong his intuitions were or were they absolutely correct.

Cough Cough

Suddenly Noworry choked on the sand.

[The Hell...

He didn't finish cursing when he noticed that Severus disappeared suddenly. Noworry panicked. He was going to fly when he noticed a black shadow.

Severus at some point fell on the desert in an unconscious state. Noworry quickly linked himself with Severus to check his conditions. Only after finding out that he blacked out due to dehydration, he sighed in relief.

For a moment Noworry was death scared for Severus.

At such a remote place, filled with perils and dangers, hoping for a backup was just wishful thinking.

Strong winds carried two strangers with them......

Both of them were wearing the same olive-green outfit. From head to toe, they were covered as if it was snowing here. Even their hands were covered with the same olive-green gloves. They had tanned skin and bushy brows. A black veil was placed over their head and tied securely to prevent dust from entering their head.

With curious expressions, they gazed at Severus.